The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County is a non-profit charitable organization based in Chester County, PA. Our mission is to ensure the perpetual preservation and stewardship of open space, natural resources, historic sites, and working agricultural lands throughout southern Chester County.

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Monday, April 16, 2012

Rookery

Look into the Sycamore trees and check out all of the large nests. There are at least thirty five nests throughout the grove of Sycamores (though not all are pictured here!)

Can you spot the bird in the nest?

This is a blue heron rookery above an old quarry site. Some days you can see the heron's standing tall on the nests. The herons will return year after year to the same site which is typically chosen for it's proximity to food sources and protection from predators. They will travel up to nine miles to forage for food. This is a great time to see the nests before the trees leaf out. If you do spot a rookery (or any other nest for that matter), remember to observe it from afar as to not disturb the nesting birds!

While we are on that note, I cannot tell you the location of this rookery, but just keep your eyes open when you see a clump of sycamore trees that are surrounding some water, this is prime location to find a great blue heron rookery.